Attorney

About the role

This position is located in Office of the General Counsel. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies within the agency. The supervisory information will be determined at time of selection.

This position is subject to Confidential Financial Disclosure reporting requirements. This position is subject to security ownership restriction reporting requirements.

What you will do

• Depending on placement, duties will be performed with a high degree of independence and will include representation before administrative tribunals, providing advice in non-adjudicatory contexts, and advising and providing legal services related to federal labor and employment law, equal employment opportunity, reasonable accommodation, harassment, personnel security, torts, and government contracts and grants, or ethics and information law.
• Reviews technical and other documents to determine legal sufficiency, performs difficult original legal research, develops solutions to novel and complex legal issues, provides legal opinion and advice, and identifies and addresses policy matters, including consideration of relevant risks.
• When serving as lead attorney, provides leadership and guidance to assigned back-up attorneys.
• In this role, makes assignments to the back-up attorneys and provides comments and revisions to documents and other work products connected with assigned matters.
• Provides advice and counsel in connection with: hiring and discipline of employees, employee pay and benefits, whistleblower retaliation, reasonable accommodation, equal employment opportunity issues, harassment, personnel security, torts, and government contracts and grants, or ethics and information law.
• Supports the Department of Justice and United States Attorneys in all aspects of litigation involving the NRC filed in the federal courts.
• When in a litigation role, prepares and, and represents the agency in difficult and complex cases before administrative tribunals including Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC), and arbitrators.
• Prepares motions and briefs, obtains witness and develops testimony, negotiates with litigants, conducts direct and cross-examination, and makes persuasive arguments during hearings.

Requirements

• You must meet the qualifications for this position by no later than 30 calendar days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position.
• All information in your resume must be true and accurate.
• Conditions of Employment: U.S. Citizenship Required This is a Drug Testing position Must be able to meet and maintain security & suitability requirements.
• As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.
• In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
• Upon completion of your trial period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Education

You must be a graduate of an accredited law school with a J.D., LL.B., or equivalent degree, and you must be an active member in good standing of the Bar of a state or territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.

You must include an unofficial or official copy of your college and/or university transcripts with your application.

Transcript must include the School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). Education must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. If you have multiple degrees (e.g., BS, MS, PhD) please submit transcripts for each degree.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements.

You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. education program.

It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website. If you are qualifying on foreign education, you MUST submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency.

Transcripts must be uploaded with your application to verify education. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

How you will be evaluated

When the application process is complete, your application will be reviewed to determine if you meet the job requirements. Your application will be evaluated based on the information provided in your resume and responses to any vacancy questions to determine your level of knowledge, skills, and abilities related to the job requirements.

You must respond to all required application questions.

If you are among the top candidates for this position, your application will be referred to the hiring manager for possible interview and selection based upon the number of available vacancies to be filled in each office. Your resume is the key means we have for evaluating your skills, knowledge, and abilities as they relate to this position.

Therefore, we encourage you to submit a resume that directly relates to this position.

Documents you must provide

• The following documents are required for your application package to be complete.
• If you fail to provide any required documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.
• Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment, title, series, grade (if applicable); and 4) other qualifications.
• Please limit your resume to 2 pages.
• See below for Additional Resume Information.
• Transcripts: You must submit an official or unofficial copy of your college and/or university transcripts with your application, if the position has a positive education requirement.
• Failure to submit transcripts will result in loss of consideration.
• Diplomas do not provide the information needed for determining qualifications and will not be accepted in lieu of transcripts.
• In addition to the above, you must submit the documents below if you claim the following eligibilities: Current Federal Employees/Reinstatement Eligibles: You must submit a copy of your most recent non-award SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action) to verify competitive/excepted status or reinstatement eligibility.
• Applicants who only submit an award SF-50 will not receive further consideration.
• Veteran Preference Eligibles: You must submit DD-214 showing type of discharge/character of service (e.g. DD-214 Member 4 Copy); SF-15 Form; and related documentation such as a VA letter showing disability percentage.
• If currently on active duty, you must submit a certification of expected discharge or release from active-duty service under honorable conditions not later than 120 days after the date the certification is submitted.
• Veteran's preference must be verified prior to appointment.
• You can find additional information about Veterans' Preference at ***
• Individuals with Disabilities: If you are applying under the Schedule A Hiring Authority, you must submit supporting documentation (i.e., Schedule A Letter).
• You may refer to the following link for additional information.
• USAJOBS Help Center - Individuals with disabilities.
• Military Spouse: All military spouses must submit documentation verifying marriage to the service member (e.g., marriage certificate); AND Current military orders (e.g., statement of service) to support active-duty service for more than 180 consecutive days; OR If you are a spouse of a 100% disabled service member, documentation must include service member's DD-214 and 100% service disability (e.g., VA Letter); OR If you are an un-remarried widow or widower of a service member killed while on active duty, documentation must include verification of service member's death while on active duty (e.g., DD-1300).
• Peace Corps: You must submit a copy of your description of service or other proof of non-competitive eligibility.
• All application materials, including transcripts, must be in English.
• Additional Resume Information: Your resume is crucial in our evaluation of your qualifications.
• Resumes should clearly demonstrate your skills, knowledge, and abilities.
• Please limit your résumé to 2 pages.
• To ensure your resume contains all required information, we encourage you to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder.
• If you choose to use your own resume, please ensure it contains all the required information, and you organize it so we can associate the following information with each experience/position: Job title Name of employer Beginning and ending dates of employment (month/year) format Hours worked per week.
• We will assume full-time unless otherwise stated.
• We will pro-rate part-time employment in crediting experience.
• Concise, results-focused language for job duties, accomplishments, related skills, and responsibilities to include any supervisory/managerial responsibilities and number of staff supervised (if applicable).
• Series and grade or equivalent (if a federal position).
• Do not include a photograph or video of yourself, or any sensitive information (age, date of birth, marital status, protected health information, religious affiliation, social security number, etc.) or other inappropriate material on your resume or cover letter.
• If your resume contains prohibited information as listed above, your application may be determined ineligible, and you will not receive consideration for this position.
• We will not access web pages linked on your resume or cover letter, links to social media such as LinkedIn, to determine your qualifications.
• Cover letters are optional.

Benefits

As an NRC employee you will enjoy excellent Federal Benefits, including: comprehensive health and life insurance plans; Flexible Spending Account Program for health and dependent care; Dental and Vision Insurance; retirement savings and investment plan similar to 401(k) (Thrift Savings Plan); annual (vacation) and paid sick leave; family friendly leave policies; 11 paid holidays per year; transit benefits.

This link provides an overview of the benefits currently offered to Federal employees.

What to expect next

You may check the status of your application at any time after the announcement closes by logging onto USAJOBs and selecting "Application Status." You will receive an acknowledgement email that your submission was successful. We will review your resume, question responses, and transcript(s) (if appropriate) to ensure you meet the qualification requirements.

We will evaluate each applicant who meets the basic qualifications on the information provided and may interview the best-qualified applicants. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability and/or security background investigation.

Additional information

Applications will be reviewed every three weeks. Review 1 - 08/13/2026 Review 2 - 09/10//2026 Review 3 - 10/08/2026 This position may be eligible for telework in accordance with agency policy.

Selectees will be required to complete a "Declaration of Federal Employment", (OF-306), prior to being appointed to determine their suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.

False statements or responses on your resume or questionnaire can jeopardize your employment opportunity and subject you to disciplinary action, including removal from Federal service. The NRC is a zero-tolerance agency with respect to illegal drug use. Individuals selected for these positions will be subject to pre-appointment drug testing.

A transferable security clearance from another agency or a background investigation leading to a clearance is required for all new hires.

To begin work at the NRC without a security clearance, you must be granted a temporary waiver of the required clearance, referred to as a 145(b) waiver. To be eligible for a 145(b) waiver you will need a favorable education verification, reference, credit, and criminal history checks.

If a waiver is granted, the successful completion of a background investigation and favorable adjudication is required for continued employment.

If you have resided outside the U.S. for an extended period of time, the agency may not be able to (1) grant the 145(b) waiver where the required investigation cannot be completed in a timely manner, or (2) achieve timely completion of the background investigation required for a security clearance.